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Skipton Building Society to write to customers to remind them of new ISA opportunities

SKIPTON Building Society is writing to all its 2014-15 ISA customers to make sure they do not miss the opportunity to top up to £15,000, following Budget changes which came into force this week.

For the entire month of July, Skipton’s fixed-rate ISA customers can top up to the maximum new limit and all variable customers will be reminded that they will now be able to top up to £15,000 from July until the tax year end.

The changes to ISA rules led to an unprecedented demand for Skipton’s ISA offerings and the society has processed a record number of applications for its products which are ready for the so-called New ISAs, or NISAS, easily surpassing the previous best in 2013. The number of ISA transfers processed in 2014 was double the previous year and Skipton’s branches, telephone team and website experienced higher levels of customer demand.

Skipton was the first UK financial institution to do the right thing by its savers following changes to ISA rules in the March Budget. Within 48 hours of Chancellor George Osborne revealing his Budget, the UK’s fourth largest building society ensured that all Fixed Rate ISA customers who subscribed from 6 April would be able to deposit their £5,940 current allowance and then top up to £15,000 in July, ensuring they wouldn’t miss out on the new allowance.

Letters will go out from next week to all Fixed Rate ISA and variable ISA customers who have deposited into their ISA in the 2014/15 tax year. The letter will remind them of the increased allowance and give details on how they can top up to the £15,000 limit.

Skipton’s Head of Products, Kris Brewster, said: “We had long campaigned on behalf of our customers for more simplification and fairness in tax-free savings. So when the ISA changes were announced we really welcomed the move and acted quickly to make sure our customers could benefit from 1 July with our innovative NISA window for fixed rate ISA customers. In doing so we became the first UK financial institution to be NISA ready.

“But we’re not content to stop there. We want to continue putting our customers first, and we are therefore writing to each and every one of our 2014-2015 ISA customers to both remind them and explain how they can top up their existing ISAs to the new £15,000 limit and make the most of the new tax free savings allowance.

“Just 48 hours after the Budget, we sent out the clear message that Skipton is fully committed to the New ISA ensuring our customers can take full advantage. Now we are contacting these customers individually - it is simply the right thing to do for our savers and in keeping with our personal approach to service.”

Skipton’s recently-launched brand new website – www.skipton.co.uk – already helps customers to make the most of their savings by providing all the details regarding its range of NISA-ready ISAs. The easy-to-use website includes information summarising the Budget changes to ISAs and provides the answers to frequently asked questions.